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OVERVIEWAppalachian State University football held its 17th of 29 preseason practices on Thursday afternoon at Kidd Brewer Stadium. One day after the weather

ranged from pleasant to downright chilly during the Mountaineers' third intrasquad scrimmage of the fall, Thursday's practice was one of the warmest of the year with sunny skies and little breeze. The practice was conducted in helmets, shoulder pads and shorts.

HIGHLIGHTS• After holding its third full intrasquad scrimmage in eight days on Wednesday, Appalachian's coaches scaled back the physical nature of practice on Thursday. The Mountaineers worked out for two-and-a-half hours but the practice was dedicated mainly to mental preparation for the fast-approaching season opener at East Carolina. • For the first time in 17 preseason practices, there were no 11-on-11 drills outside of the special-teams periods. Instead, Appalachian focused intensively on individual and group drills.• Oregon transfer Tacoi Sumler saw his first action in the Black and Gold. As expected, the redshirt freshman wearing No. 6 displayed game-breaking speed and quickness. He also proved to have terrific hands and route-running ability albeit while still picking up the intricacies of Appalachian's playbook. After practice, Sumler was one of the last players to leave the practice field, as he stayed behind to field punts.• Despite being deep into what can be aptly described as the dog days of fall camp, Appalachian's conditioning appears to be in midseason form. The Mountaineers completed their grueling post-practice conditioning drills with relative ease.

WHAT'S UP NEXTAppalachian is scheduled hold two relatively light practices on Friday in anticipation of Saturday's Fan Fest at Kidd Brewer Stadium. All practices are closed to the general public but GoASU.com will have exclusive updates from the practice field throughout fall camp.

APPALACHIAN STATE FOOTBALL FAN FEST PRESENTED BY CAROLINA WEST WIRELESSSaturday, August 18 • Kidd Brewer Stadium

6 p.m. — Appalachian State football holds its final intrasquad scrimmage of the preseason.

8:30 p.m. — NEEDTOBREATHE performs. A nationally acclaimed Southern rock band from Possum Kingdom, S.C., NEEDTOBREATHE is touring nationwide on the heels of their latest album, The Reckoning, debuting at No. 6 on Billboard’s top-200 chart. NeedToBreathe has sold out venues such as Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium and Chicago’s House of Blues and scored an impressive number of placements in blockbuster films and numerous primetime television shows, including P.S. I Love You, Desperate Housewives and The Biggest Loser.

TICKETS• Admission to the entire Fan Fest event, including the scrimmage, on-field activities and NEEDTOBREATHE concert is FREE for Appalachian State football season-ticket holders and Appalachian students.• General-admission tickets for non-season ticket holders cost just $10 and can be purchased online by clicking HERE, by phone at (828) 262-2079 (Friday, 9 a.m.-4 p.m.), in person at the Appalachian athletics ticket office, located in the Holmes Center (Friday, 9 a.m.-4 p.m.) or at the Kidd Brewer Stadium Ticket Plaza on Saturday afternoon.

NOTES• Tailgating will be permitted throughout the day (including during the event) in the following parking lots: Champions, Raley, Greenwood, Stadium and Rivers Street Parking Deck.• Fans will be permitted to come and go as they please throughout the event. When exiting Kidd Brewer Stadium, fans will receive a wristband for re-entry.• Appalachian State player autographs will be split into two sessions. The Mountaineer offense will sign autographs from 4:00-4:45 p.m., followed by the Appalachian defense from 4:45-5:30 p.m. (times subject to change).